Crytek went so overboard on the Crysis tech it created a whole blushing system, implemented nose shadows, and sent devs to photograph leaves in Haiti to get the translucency right: 'We went over bonkers on this one'

GamesCrysisCrytek went so overboard on the Crysis tech it created a whole blushing system, implemented nose shadows, and sent devs to photograph leaves in Haiti to get the translucency right: ‘We went over bonkers on this one’When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Crytek)

2007 shooter and part-time meme Crysis is the subject of an in-depth retrospective in the latest issue ofPC Gamer magazine, in which Rick Lane sits down with Crytek CEO Cevat Yerli to go over the game’s development. Coming off the back of Far Cry, the studio’s ambition for what its next game would deliver in terms of physics and visuals was huge—to the extent that one of the minor tasks Crytek set itself was to build a new engine that could achieve a level of visual complexity that CryEngine 1 was never built for.

“[The new engine] allowed us to drill into things like snow shaders, frozen shaders,” says Yerli. “Some of this work was really cool. The shader work that came out of this was mind-blowing at times.”

Yerli makes a distinction between photorealism and video realism, with the latter being Crytek’s goal for how its jungle environment would look.

“Video realism was about [how] things in motion should look real, as opposed to [in] screenshots,” explains Yerli. “Video realism allowed us to study motion blur, depth of field, animations, physical reactions. Breakable trees came out of this, right? Where we said we’ve got to have destruct[ible] vegetation.”

Crytek decided the only way to get its jungle perfect was to go and photograph the real thing: So it sent a research team of developers to Haiti to document an actual jungle environment as best they could.

“They took a gazillion photos and videos, and they studied the light interactions with the trees and the canopies for god rays, and subsurface scattering… this soft, green translucency where the sun is behind [the leaf]”, says Yerli. “Subsurface scattering was a technology that existed already in engines, but was super slow. Nobody had done it at scale.”

Crytek got properly into the weeds on dynamic lighting, with Yerli and the team refusing anything less than high-quality dynamic lights and shadows in a detailed open world environment. On top of which, all the flora had to move: Both the organic sway of nature rustling away, and responding to things like characters brushing past.

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals

“We were simulating the trees for physics. We were bending them in different wind directions, and then eventually the light and the shadows will be all in real time, all the way to subsurface scattering on the leaves.” This led to the studio’s half-joking assertion that “one tree has more technology built in than the entire algorithm for rendering Far Cry.”

This dedication could sometimes tip over into something that looks a little like obsession, with the tech also being applied to character surfaces and how they moved. Yerli says that Crysis included a skin shader that’s precise down to the eyes. “Even the eye had, like, shadow within the eyeballs. Shadow maps [are] calculated for the face itself. So when the light was shining from a certain angle, the nose would cast a shadow.”

The game even had a dedicated skin shader that, if required, could make characters blush. “We went over bonkers on this one,” laughs Yerli.

Which is probably why we’re still talking about the game nearly two decades later, even if you never noticed your super soldier blushing. The full interview contains much more on the over-the-top ambition of Crysis’s development, some of which had amusing and unexpected outcomes: The game’s magical Nanosuit turned out so convincing that an actual nanotech conference asked Yerli to give a keynote speech. “I said, excuse me, but this is all fake.”

More about gamesWorld of Warcraft’s most recent patch soars with fun additions that last just long enoughThe Sims begins its 25th anniversary celebration next week with a Behind The Sims episode of news and announcementsLatestToday’s Wordle answer for Saturday, January 11See more latest►

More about games

World of Warcraft’s most recent patch soars with fun additions that last just long enoughThe Sims begins its 25th anniversary celebration next week with a Behind The Sims episode of news and announcements

Image for World of Warcraft’s most recent patch soars with fun additions that last just long enough

World of Warcraft’s most recent patch soars with fun additions that last just long enough

The Sims 4 - a woman with red hair and a purple top exclaims with excitement

The Sims begins its 25th anniversary celebration next week with a Behind The Sims episode of news and announcements

LatestToday’s Wordle answer for Saturday, January 11See more latest►

Latest

Today’s Wordle answer for Saturday, January 11

Wordle answers

Today’s Wordle answer for Saturday, January 11

See more latest►

Most PopularPiranha Games will lay off employees after Mechwarrior 5: Clans ‘performed below projections’Marvel Rivals’ latest update quietly killed the game’s burgeoning mod sceneSorry everyone, Minecraft 2 is cancelled, and it might be our faultTeam Fortress 2 just had the single biggest trade in its history, with ‘the absolute best hat you can get’ going for around $40KIs the new RTX 5070 really as fast as Nvidia’s previous flagship RTX 4090 GPU? Turns out the answer is yes. Kinda.Elden Ring: Nightreign is getting a closed network test, and I’m totally not fuming because PC players aren’t invited to the party, or anythingIf you’re a content creator and gamer looking for a CPU upgrade, this Ryzen 9 9900X deal will get you $90 offAMD is now reportedly making all-American Ryzen 9000 CPU dies at TSMC’s Arizona fabI tried a sim racing rig that generates ‘wind’ at CES 2025 and it’s claimed to help keep VR nausea at bayFinal Fantasy 14 communities panic as it turns out change to blacklisting, meant to help reduce stalking, also lets players use mods to track their altsTikTok’s time in the US may be ticking to a close as it makes a last stand in the Supreme Court, though Trump now says he ‘opposes banning’ it

Most Popular

Piranha Games will lay off employees after Mechwarrior 5: Clans ‘performed below projections’

Marvel Rivals’ latest update quietly killed the game’s burgeoning mod scene

Sorry everyone, Minecraft 2 is cancelled, and it might be our fault

Team Fortress 2 just had the single biggest trade in its history, with ‘the absolute best hat you can get’ going for around $40K

Is the new RTX 5070 really as fast as Nvidia’s previous flagship RTX 4090 GPU? Turns out the answer is yes. Kinda.

Elden Ring: Nightreign is getting a closed network test, and I’m totally not fuming because PC players aren’t invited to the party, or anything

If you’re a content creator and gamer looking for a CPU upgrade, this Ryzen 9 9900X deal will get you $90 off

AMD is now reportedly making all-American Ryzen 9000 CPU dies at TSMC’s Arizona fab

I tried a sim racing rig that generates ‘wind’ at CES 2025 and it’s claimed to help keep VR nausea at bay

Final Fantasy 14 communities panic as it turns out change to blacklisting, meant to help reduce stalking, also lets players use mods to track their alts

TikTok’s time in the US may be ticking to a close as it makes a last stand in the Supreme Court, though Trump now says he ‘opposes banning’ it

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review4Ikea Utespelare desk review5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

A bunch of the best Steam Deck accessories on a blue background.

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here review

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

4Ikea Utespelare desk review

Ikea Utespelare desk review

5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals#

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals